Friday, July 24, 2009

I know it has been awhile, but there has been just too much going on in my life, and blogging seemed so trite and pointless. But people keep saying I need to try to keep things normal; I need to keep up with my routine, etc. Whatever. Here's a meme to get things kicking again, which I stole from my sister at Stumbled Into Fate.

1. What is your current obsession?

Oh, there are so many. Going to the shooting range; reading the newest in fantasy and chick lit; Dr. Pepper.

2. What do you hate the most that everyone else seems to love?

I dislike reality TV. I'm not talking Dirty Jobs or Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern, I mean like the VH1, MTV, Real Desperate Wives That Live Somewhere or Other. Gag.

3. What are you wearing today?

I have on a bit of a dressy light blue v-neck shirt, paired with my favorite jeans and probably my gray sneakers, although I'm sporting the barefoot look at the moment, since I'm sitting alone at home.

4. What's for dinner?

Spaghetti Marinara that I have frozen in my freezer (TV dinner), plus chips and dip, along with a heaping dose of whatever the Travel Channel wants to throw my way.

5. What would you eat for your last meal?

A cheeseburger, fries, hot apple pie, and a ginormous Dr. Pepper.

6. What is the last thing you bought?

Gas for my car. I avoid buying frivolously lately. I'm going to Wingstop, and this will be the first time I've spent money on something I don't really need for awhile.

7. What are you listening to right now?

My TV. Some weird show that will discuss Harry Potter, "the greatest children's classic of a generation."

8. What do you think of the person that tagged you?

I didn't actually get tagged. :/ But I love my sister. :)

9. If you could have a house--fully paid for and totally furnished--anywhere in the world, where would it be?

Texas. Or possibly somewhere pretty, with seasons, a small suburb community a la Gilmore Girls.

10. If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would it be?

I haven't been to an arcade in forever. . .

11. What is one of your hobbies?

Reading. Lol. Was that hard to guess?

12. What is ONE of your favorite quotes?

"Your trials are but a small moment. . ." D&C 119.

13. What is your favorite color?

Gray. Dove gray.

14. What is your favorite piece of clothing in your wardrobe?

I love my Hydraulic jeans. A little distressed and a lot comfortable.

15. What is your dream job?

I would love to be the editor of PC Gamer magazine.

16. Describe your personal style.

One hundred percent casual. Jeans, t-shirts that are probably a little too short for most peoples' comfort, and flip-flops, or some Chucks.

17. What is your favorite tree?

I like Oak trees. They represent strength and wisdom, at least to me, and those are two things I need daily.Also, nothing is nicer than sitting, reading under one on a cool Fall day.

18. What are you going to do after this?

I'm going to Wingstop to meet a friend.

19. What is your favorite fruit?

I love Cantaloupe. Especially when it is soft and juicy.

20. What inspires you?

Music, scriptures, people, art. It depends on my mood and what touches me that day.

Friday, July 3, 2009

Despite the doom and gloom title, this is not an emo posting. Instead, it is one that I will use to first say that Burn Notice is up and running, and OMGsh, I LOVE Burn Notice. Is it bad that Fiona is my total hero? Nothing can't be solved with some C-4 or a shotgun and some bad awesomeness.

But, browsing through Hulu after watching the latest Burn Notice, I found an old show I never got into because when I started watching, I started watching late, and so had no idea what the frak was going on. Dead Like Me, in which there are some lines that make me laugh, the main character makes some observations that I can't help but agree with ("Bad people are punished by society; good people are punished by Murphy's Law."), and the career counselor? Dolores Herbig "As In Her Big Brown Eyes"? Totally reminds me of my boss. I am not lying. Oh, I mean my ex-boss, who moved. But seriously, imagine going to work to deal with THAT every day.

I know that this subject is probably old, considering I've had it on my iPhone almost as long as I've had my iPhone, but the Pandora Radio app is teh awesome. Not only was it free, but it seems to know what I want to hear next.

All you have to do is tap it up, and type in what you want to hear: Fall Out Boy, Jack Johnson, etc., or even a type of music: Indie, Alternative, Rock, Pop. Then the app takes what you gave it and gives you your favorite songs, and introduces you to new songs by similar artists, or artists whose sound fits what you want to hear.

A good example: I'm currently listening to the Jack Johnson radio station (yes, he has his own on Pandora radio), and suddenly a Bob Marley song came on. I am not a big Bob Marley fan. In fact, I'm not really a fan at all. But the song Is This Love segued from Jason Mraz and I told myself I should listen before judging, so I did. Does anyone else agree that that song is kind of, well . . . sexy? So, I gave it a thumbs up, another great aspect of the app.

You can give a song a thumbs up or a thumbs down, depending on how you're liking it. A thumbs down stops the song and moves you onto the next. Also, you can pause on any song, or skip any you're not in the mood for. I've been listening for over a half hour, and I must say that I've given a thumbs up to most of the songs.

Honestly, I don't see why you wouldn't have this app, even if you don't listen to music that often. I only listen to music when I'm in certain moods. I'm a moody listener. :P And yet, here I am, listening to Dispatch, a band I've never even heard of, and I'm thinking about giving it a thumbs up. It certainly makes the afternoon more palatable.

Pandora has opened the box to a whole new music world for me and it's all good from what I can hear.

Thursday, July 2, 2009

So, I had a pretty stressful, annoying day, starting with a crappy class and ending with a student that didn't understand the words "we're closing." So, I came home hungry and cranky. The best thing for me when I'm cranky is just to crank up the tunes. Get lost in some really aggressive song like, "Stinkfist," by Tool, or "Scream," from Avenged Sevenfold.

Once my need to punch someone in the face abates, I like to wind down by listening to some smooth greats of my generation. Jack Johnson, Jason Mraz, Citizen Cope. Those are my favorites, and I haven't really found others that hit the spot quite like them, so if anyone has some suggestions, feel free to let me know! I am all for the easy-does-it croons that Jack Johnson and friends deliver, especially on days when I need to take Advil and remember to breathe deeply.

In conclusion, here's some great lyrics to get you in the easy-going mood:

"Better Together"

"Better Together"

There's no combination of wordsI could put on the back of a postcardNo song that I could singBut I can try for your heartOur dreams, and they are made out of real thingsLike a, shoebox of photographsWith sepiatone lovingLove is the answer,At least for most of the questions in my heartLike/ why are we here? And where do we go? And how come it's so hard?It's not always easy andSometimes life can be deceivingI'll tell you one thing it's always better when we're together

And all of these momentsJust might find their way into my dreams tonightBut I know that they'll be goneWhen the morning light singsAnd brings new thingsFor tomorrow night you seeThat they'll be gone tooToo many things I have to doBut if all of these dreams might find their wayInto my day to day sceneI'd be under the impressionI was somewhere in betweenWith only twoJust me and youNot so many things we got to doOr places we got to beWe'll Sit beneath the mango tree now

MMmmmm MMMmmmm MmmmmmI believe in memoriesThey look so, so pretty when I sleepHey now, and when I wake up,You look so pretty sleeping next to meBut there is not enough time,And there is no, no song I could singAnd there is no, combination of words I could sayBut I will still tell you one thingWe're better together.